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So, "Who is Fred!?”you ask?"Fred
might be the pit bull that bit my ass in the sixth grade”, says Bill
White."It’s open to interpretation. Maybe you’ll never know who it is.” FOF
was formed in the fall of 1996 when Bill White (vocals/guitar) found
Chris "the Shredder” McGrath (lead guitar/vocals) and Mark "Snoopy”
Illiano (bass) through a musician’s ad...that’s right, someone actually
reads those things. McGrath and Illiano, friends since high school,
spent many years on the LI/NYC music circuit searching for the right
musicians to complete an original music project. After months of
sifting through a non-stop parade of frustrated wannabes, delusional
losers and self-absorbed egomaniacal hacks, they were glad to find Bill
White. They clicked immediately with White and began to rehearse
frequently while looking for a steady drummer.
Soon, they found Matt McCluskey... a talented drummer who was lamenting the break up of some band called Swim. Quickly dubbed "Matt the Angry Drummer” by the band due to his deep set eyes and intense neuroses regarding his drumset, McCluskey was be-dazzled with FOF’s material and quickly fit into the groove.
They wrote,
rehearsed, and recorded while performing in the Tri-State area to
filled rooms (CBGB’s, LeBar Bat, Kenny’s Castaways, Lion’s Den, the
Continental, the Downtown, NY Avenue, etc.). The bands Demo, Debut CD,
and Live performances quickly received RAVE reviews from all the local
music papers
(Newsday, Island Ear, Inside Connection, Good Times, LI Entertainment,
etc.) and radio airplay from all of the local stations (WLIR, WBLI,
WBAB, WRCN, WCWP, WRHU, WUSB, WSIA). Fan and media reaction to FOF’s
early tunes was an indication that they had something special and were
on the right track... the growing number of stalkers and awestruck
groupies was also a good sign.
FOF’s second disc entitled "Another Bad Day” was released during August of 2002. They worked with Jim Sabella on this one. Jim has done production work with Public Enemy, Marcy Playground (Sex & Candy), and Nine Days (Story of a Girl). The disc was promoted through the Planetary Group 9/2002. "Another Bad Day” made it onto the CMJ TOP 20 add list (9/02), debuted @ #143 on the CMJ TOP 200 CHART
and received frequent spins at local commercial stations WLIR, WBAB,
& Q104 in NY, and over 175 U.S. College stations. The band
conducted a significant amount of appearances, interviews and
performances on commercial and college rad FOF’s noteworthy gigs include opening act slots at the Tommy Hilfiger/Jones Beach Concert Theater in NY with Bad Company, Styx, and Billy Squier (7/01). Clear Channel reps were impressed and also granted them an opening slot for Huey Lewis & the News (8/4/01).
During 2003 & 2004, MTV featured FOF songs in their reality shows "Sorority Life” and "Fraternity Life”. 14 FOF songs were used during the two seasons. In 2006, FoF released their third CD
“Girls on Reality TV” to more positive reviews
Once again, FoF was asked to perform at The Great South Bay Festival and headlined The Sayville Summerfest as well as The Long Island Fall Festival in Huntington, NY. Currently FoF is in the newly renovated
and redesigned FoF Cave, writing and recording material for
their next CD to be released very soon while also preparing
for their 2010 Summer Tour.
The band is poised to achieve its goal of spreading FEAR... of FRED to all modern rock fans. Stay tuned...
Don't forget to visit Fear of Fred at My Space by clicking here. |
The band
distributed the self-produced debut disc to 300 college radio stations
through Howard Rosen Promotions. They made it onto the Top 20 CMJ
addlist (3/2000) and were put into rotation on 165 college stations
across the US. They cracked the Top 30 list on over 25 stations.
io stations after the release
of the disc. FOF has a loyal following in the Tri-State Area and a
reputation for drawing large crowds of self-proclaimed 
and hysteria. The title track and “Stray” were then featured
in two commercials airing nationally on Nickelodeon for Mi-Jamm
products. That same year “Stray” was featured on “The NFL
Today” on CBS. In 2007 they were recruited to perform at The
Great South Bay Festival, Port Jefferson Music Festival, and
Stony Brook University’s “Wolfstock.” 
In
2007, FoF performed a sold out 10th Anniversary
show at The Boulton Center in Bayshore, NY and featured
their first ever documentary, written, produced, directed,
narrated by Matt the Angry Drummer (with some professional
help as well).After 10 years of constant touring FoF slowed
down a little bit in 2008 to focus on other projects
including their first music video, yet they still performed
an awe inspiring set at The Great South Bay Festival and
headlined The Sayville Summerfest. 
FoF
spent the early part of 2009 filming and editing their first
ever music video “Girls on Reality TV” featuring VH-1’s
“Smartest Model”, Mandy Lynn. The video was finally released
in the Spring of 2009 and quickly became an internet and You
Tube sensation.
